My Friend
by DigiConjurer
Summary: It's Chacamaru's first day in class 3-A. Yet why is she human now?


Chapter 1

The New Girl

Disclaimer: I don't own Negima.

(A/N: Adopted from Angel981)

I stared up at the middle school before me, swallowing nervously. It was my first day here, and, well, any girl was bound to be nervous meeting others . . . right?  
>Taking another deep breath and letting it go shakily, I slowly climbed the stone steps one by one until I stood directly in front of the unnecessarily large pair of doors. My hand hesitated just shy of the metal door handle, and I bit my lower lip. Everyone should be in class by now . . .<br>At least, I hoped so. Shakily, I grasped the silver painted (at least I think it was silver painted) handle, opening the door with a long, deep 'creeeeak'.  
>Shivering at the more than just slightly creepy noise, I peeked inside. The hallway was brightly lit, which, thank God, was deserted of all and any human life at the current moment.<br>After about three minutes of waiting for someone to jump out and scream, "BOO!" or something similar, I silently slipped inside. The silence was immediately noticeable – which, I actually was really glad for. Taking a few more timid steps forward, I gave a small squeal as the door shut behind me with a loud 'snap'.  
>After a few moments, I continued my decent down the hall . . . slowly.<br>My footsteps echoed repeatedly off the stone walls, creating a rather lonesome sound. I didn't really mind, though. I was used to being alone. It was the only thing I really knew now and days.  
>Biting my lower lip once again to stop myself from tearing up, I shook my head. I was starting junior high, so there was no need to cry about the past . . . no matter how painful.<br>Gritting my teeth, I took another deep breath before slowly letting it out.  
>Stopping suddenly, I realized I had no idea where I was or where I was going. Opening the leather satchel, I rummaged through the neatly kept papers inside.<br>'Let's see . . . registration papers . . . binders, pencils . . . erasers . . . random papers with random recipes. . . where is it? . . . . . . Ah ha!' I pulled out a schedule, a bit satisfied with my find. "Let's see." I murmured softly to myself. "What room exactly am I supposed to be going to?"  
>Scanning the paper quickly, I read;<p>

Student's Name- Karakuri, Chachamaru  
>Student's Grade- 7th<br>Homeroom class- 3 - A  
>Hallway- 631<br>Note- If you need any help, ask for Professor Takamichi.

"Who's Professor Takamichi?" I murmured to myself, sliding the paper back into the satchel. Glancing at the nearest door, I noted the room number – 5 - G.  
>At least I wasn't too far away . . . I think.<br>'I'm hopeless, really. I can't even find where my own homeroom is.' I thought with a sad sigh. 'I mean, who can't figure out a hallway's direction?'  
>I pondered for a moment, trying to decide what to do and where to go next. 'At least the continuous sound of my footsteps helps me think . . .' I thought somewhat happily. I tapped my chin gently, blinking in realization. 'Wait a minute . . .'<br>Glancing down, I frowned down at my stationary feet. I wasn't walking . . .  
>"You're dead Ayaka!" A girl shouted, startling the hell out of me. Giving another small squeak, I glanced around for some possible place to hide. God, I was an idiot. Who can't tell if they're walking or not?!<br>Spotting a plastic tree, I slipped behind it just in time.  
>A girl with long, blonde hair and turquoise eyes rushed past me, her face flushed a bright red. Only seconds later, she was tackled by a girl with bright orange hair and blue eyes whose face was an even darker shade of crimson. Every time the girl with orange hair moved, the bells tied to her hair made a little 'jingle' sound.<br>"Get off me, Asuna!" the other girl nearly screamed, trying to pull free from under the girl.  
>"No, I won't!" Asuna crossed her arms, watching the other girl's futile attempts to squirm from under her with an agitated expression. "Do you know why, Ayaka?"<br>A look of suppressed rage passed over the blonde's features as she spat, "Asuna, get your big butt off me before I shout out 'help' for the entire school to hear. We both know how well that worked out last time.  
>"Shut up!" The red-head growled, pulling the other girl's hair rather harshly. "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" Ayaka cried, doing her best to hit what little of the other girl she could. "Asuna! Let go!"<br>I winced. "That has got to hurt." I mumbled.  
>Asuna froze, letting go of the blonde's hair. "What was that?" She frowned, glancing in my general direction. I was actually rather surprised that she didn't see me . . .<br>I squeaked, coving my mouth with a hand. I hadn't meant for her to hear me.  
>"I don't know, but you better get off me, you big ape!" Ayaka shot, glaring at the girl as best as she could manage.<br>"What did you call me?!" Asuna yelled, her eyes narrowing. "You're an ape, and you know it!" Ayaka remarked. "You're a bigger meanie than that one girl in 6 - B!"  
>Asuna's face turned even redder from not-so-suppressed rage as she began pulling on the girl's blonde hair once more. "You stupid little brat! You'll pay for what you said!"<br>I took a step back, ready to bolt at any moment. 'I should run while I have the chance . . . But . . . I don't want to leave that poor girl to fend for herself . . .'  
>I ran my fingers through my long, light green hair thoughtfully. What should I do? If I revealed myself, they might get mad at me for hiding near them. If I didn't, that girl could get seriously hurt. 'Why must I be so indecisive?!'<br>"Hey Ayaka . . ." Asuna's voice drew me from my thoughts. "Why are we fighting in the first place?"  
>Ayaka rolled her eyes. "Because, stupid, you-"<br>The blonde blinked, as if trying to draw back a fleeting thought. "I can't remember. Huh, weird."  
>"Well that just shows how stupid you are." Asuna replied, crossing her arms once again.<br>Ayaka set her head on her arms and stared up at Asuna as best as she could.  
>"Can I get up now?"<p>

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I said so, that's why!"

"Well, could you at least get your big butt off of where it's at? My back's starting to hurt."

"No, because you might run away if I do."

"Please?"

"No."

Ayaka thought for a moment, chewing on the ends of her hair thoughtfully.

"I'll buy lunch."

"Deal."

Asuna quickly scrambled off of Ayaka, rubbing her stomach hopefully. "Can we go now? I'm really hungry!"  
>Ayaka quickly pushed herself to her feet, brushing the dirt on her uniform off. "No, dummy. Class is still in session, in case you forgot."<br>"Oh, right!" Asuna 'face-palmed' herself. "I totally forgot!"  
>I stifled both a laugh and a sigh as the girls turned to leave. 'Now,' I thought with a small smile. 'I can finally slip away unnoticed . . .'<br>However, fate wasn't entirely on my side today . . .  
>As soon as I tried to slip around and away from my slightly obvious hiding space, my skirt somehow had managed to get caught onto one of the fake branches. The tree tumbled over, pulling me down to the ground with it. I gave out a small squeal in fright as I flailed my arms around desperately as if to grab a hold of something. For what, I didn't know.<br>Hitting the hard, freezing, tiled floor of the hall head-first, I couldn't help but noticed the small stars that danced in and out of my vision rather quickly. Blinking rapidly to clear them away, I quickly noticed that both Asuna and Ayaka were peering down at me with quite worried-some expressions.  
>Feeling my face grow quite warm with a blush, I quickly averted my gaze away from theirs. Could I have been any clumsier?!<br>Poking my cheek with a serious expression, Asuna inquired, "Is she dead?"  
>Ayaka sighed, shaking her head, "Asuna, she just looked up at us. Do you think that she's dead?"<br>"Yea, I suppose you're right." The other girl replied, frowning. "I haven't seen you around here, before. What's your name?"  
>Both of them helped me to my feet, and I rocked back and fro nervously. Mumbling my name barely loud enough for myself to hear, I kept my light green eyes trained steadily on my rocking feet. "What?" Both of them asked, making it clear they hadn't heard me.<br>After a few seconds, I mumbled a bit louder for them to hear, "Chachamaru . . ."  
>Asuna frowned. "Why is that name so familiar?"<br>I shrugged, still staring at my feet. "Because," Ayaka rolled her eyes. "You idiot. She's the new student."  
>A moment of silence . . .<br>"I knew that!" Asuna snapped in response, blushing. Grabbing a hold of my arm suddenly, the red-head began pulling me down the hall. "W- W- What th- the?!" I stammered, glancing back at Ayaka, who had begun to help by pushing me.  
>Rolling her eyes, Asuna stated, "Well, you have to meet the rest of your class!"<p>

*** About Ten Minutes Later

When Asuna finally stopped pushing me, I had a sinking suspicion the heels of my shoes were already worn down. Great.  
>"Stay right here!" Asuna demanded as she disappeared into the classroom we had stopped by. "We'll be right back." Ayaka added, following the girl with quick steps.<br>I bit my lower lip, again, in my oh-so-nervous habit as I ran my fingers through my long hair thoughtfully.  
>What would the class be like? How would I react to everyone? Was I really going to like this school? What if I'm left all alone again? There were so many questions I didn't know the answers to.<br>I sighed, sinking down onto the cold, tile floor of the hallway. Hugging my knees to my chest, I rested my head against them. What if I was left alone once again in this world? There had indeed been much happier times earlier in my life. But that was then . . . when father was around.  
>Smoothing my sun dress down as I hummed a rather happy tune to myself, I smiled. Father was coming home. He was finally coming home!<br>"Straighten up!" My grandmother commanded, hitting me over the back of my head. I did as she said to – numbly wishing I could rub the stinging sensation away.  
>Father would be home soon . . . and that meant standing her and waiting for him. It didn't matter that my legs ached . . . it didn't matter if I was tired . . . nothing mattered.<br>An hour passed . . . two hours . . . maybe even three.  
>And that's when the door opened.<br>He walked through the door, dropping his brown pack onto the floor with a loud 'thud'. Dressed in army green, he smiled at the two of us. "Wendy! Chachamaru!"  
>His grin widened as her hugged his mother-in-law. Turning to me, he knelt down – his smile disappearing. I looked up, finding myself staring into those gray-blue eyes I knew so well. His light green hair fell limply over them, framing his face perfectly. "I'm home."<br>Throwing my arms around him, I began to cry. It's been so long since I'd seen him . . . I thought for sure he had died!  
>Thank God he was home . . . Thank God he was safe . . .<p>

"Chachamaru?" A voice questioned, slicing through my train of thought – causing me to jump. I quickly looked up, my heart beating a thousand mile a minute. A man was standing above me, looking rather concerned. He had white, spiky hair and silvery eyes hidden behind a pair of glasses. He frowned, offering me a hand to stand. "Are you alright? Do I need to send for the nurse?"  
>Hesitantly, I took his hand as I shook my head. Helping me to my feet, he nodded. "Alright . . . Follow me please."<br>I swallowed nervously, following behind him rather uncertainly. Curious eyes watched my every move as I stepped into the room, causing me to blush.  
>Hanging my head, I let my hair hide my face as he steered me to the front of the classroom. I nearly bumped into him, but I somehow managed not to. As I entered, I had one of those strange feeling, like I had been here before but why? At that moment, that question didn't matter.<br>"Everyone," He stated. "This is Chachamaru Karakuri. From now on, she's going to part of class 3-A. Due to some . . . personal problems, she hasn't been able to attend until the middle of the school year. Please help her feel welcomed!"  
>A few murmurs spread through the classroom, making me feel even more uncomfortable than I already was.<br>I chanced a peek at the class through my strands of hair curiously. I was rather surprised to see at least thirty students. "Now," He began again. "I want you to introduce yourselves."  
>And, one by one, just about each girl stated her name. Though, there were a few who merely glared at me and said nothing.<br>"There's a seat beside Eva." The teacher stated, motioning towards a girl who looked no older than ten or twelve. The girl scowled at both him and I, crossing her arms as she looked away with an audible 'humph!'  
>Slowly, I dragged myself to the open seat. Every gaze followed me as I did, and I felt my face become more and more flushed from the attention. Stifling a sigh, I risked a quick glance at her.<br>She was glaring at me. And, it wasn't one of those, 'I hate you' glares. This one said, 'I'm going to murder you in your sleep'.  
>Her expression didn't soften as she flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder and looked away. "Stay out of my way." She growled venomously.<br>My gaze quickly snapped down the wooden desk in front of me. 'Oh, God. Please don't tell me I just made an enemy . . .'


End file.
